The Tennessee Education Association and five Tennessee public school educators have filed a lawsuit against the Tennessee Commissioner of Education and members of the State Board of Education challenging the constitutionality of Public Chapter No. 493, known as the Prohibited Concepts Law. The law prohibits teaching of core subjects in Tennessee State Standards, which the plaintiffs say puts teachers in an impossible position and deprives students of a quality education.
The lawsuit calls into question the constitutionality of the vague language of the law and the subjective nature of its enforcement. Specifically, the lawsuit claims the law fails to provide Tennessee educators a reasonable opportunity to understand what conduct it prohibits and it encourages arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement.
The lawsuit asks the court to issue a permanent injunction against enforcement of the prohibited concepts law and declare the law unconstitutional under the Fourteenth Amendment.